Social Relations and Endogenous Culture

The current state of economics as a science is critically evaluated in view of its lack of emphasis on sociological and psychological factors. In particular, I argue that humans are embedded in social structures and that they choose actions taking account of the social contexts in which they live and the social interactions to which they belong. Preferences then should be considered not as exogenously given but as endogenously evolved, allowing for bounded rationality and psychological factors. I provide a brief sketch of the possible model formulation for a more desirable theory, invoking network theory and an indirect evolutionary approach. JEL classification numbers: A12, A13, B40.     

Alternative concepts of management: Insights from asia and africa

Some Asian and African concepts including the logic of mutual benefit among heterogeneous elements, polyocular vision, self-heterogenization, ability to think in one another's mind, interpersonal aidaschaft, situational adaptability and overlapping responsibility are compared with the European and North American concepts of unity by homogeneity, individual identity, boundary, specialization, separation, opposition, hierarchy, tension and extension.The author is Visiting Professor of International Business and Business Policy at the National University of Singapore.     

Social and political interactions among extraterrestrial human communities: Contrasting models

With the advent of the era of extraterrestrial communities, we have reached the stage of our civilization where many of the constraints which restrict the life on the Earth are removed. Temperature, humidity, seasons, length of day, weather, artificial gravity and atmospheric pressure can be set at will, and new types of cultures, social organization and social philosophies become possible. We will be in a position to first invent new cultural patterns and new social philosophies and then choose material conditions and community design to fit the desired cultural goals and philosophies. The purpose of this article is to discuss various alternative models of the political and social interactions among the extraterrestrial communities in order to make intelligent choices among the alternatives. This article consists of two parts: The first part deals with various types of interactions among extraterrestrial communities and how they correspond to various epistomologies. The second part deals with the fact that homo sapiens has developed an ability, abnormal compared to other animals, to wage wars, and how this ability must be counteracted by another ability for long-range optimization which cannot be obtained by a succession of short-range optimizations.     

Corporate Governance Structure and Employment Adjustment in Japan: An Empirical Analysis Using Corporate Finance Data

I investigate the influence of corporate governance structures on employment adjustment in Japanese firms, using financial data for firms listed on the Japanese stock market. The results indicate that corporate governance structures affect the rate of employment adjustment. The presence of large stockholders and the degree of stock cross–holding lengthens the period the firm remains in debt and slows down the speed of employment adjustment.     

Is there a retirement consumption puzzle in Japan? Evidence from a household panel dataset spanning several years

Using a unique long-run panel of Japanese households, this paper examines the changes in consumption at retirement (‘the retirement-consumption puzzle’). Our analysis shows that households’ expenditure does decline after the retirement of the household head and that changes in household composition at retirement cannot fully account for this decline. Changes in life-style/preferences after retirement also do not appear to explain a salient feature of the expenditure decline, namely, the strong correlation between the magnitudes of the expenditure decline and the income decline upon retirement. On the other hand, our finding that the expenditure decline is larger for households with smaller savings and/or that experienced a large unexpected income decline is broadly consistent with the standard LC/PIH augmented with unexpected shocks, while it does not rule out the possibility that there is a relatively small subset of households that are myopic and lack sufficient saving discipline.     

Gender and empowerment: assessing discrepancies using the resident empowerment through tourism scale

While gender equality and empowerment are core components of sustainable tourism, most of the literature has approached the concepts from qualitative perspectives, thus limiting the ability to empirically test for empowerment discrepancies between men and women. With this gap in mind, this study sought to test the widely held notion that empowerment discrepancies exist between men and women in tourism development. Discrepancies in psychological, social and political empowerment were tested for using the 12-item Resident Empowerment through Tourism Scale (RETS). The RETS was administered across five sample populations, with results revealing that gender discrepancies were present, but surprisingly, not in the direction suggested in previous literature. In all three US samples, there was evidence that women were more likely to perceive themselves being empowered than men. The results from the two Japanese samples did not find any significant differences, which is of interest because Japan is traditionally seen a very patriarchal society. Applications of the RETS can be paired with qualitative research to better understand empowerment success stories and then to apply these best practices to other destinations where empowerment discrepancies are present. Future applications of the RETS are suggested to help initiate “gender mainstreaming” within the sustainable tourism literature.     

DOES CORESIDENCE IMPROVE AN ELDERLY PARENT'S HEALTH?

It is generally believed that intergenerational coresidence by elderly parents and adult children provides old‐age security for parents. Although such coresidence is still the most common living arrangement in many countries, empirical evidence of its benefits to parental health is scarce. Using Indonesian data and a program evaluation technique that accounts for non‐random selection and heterogeneous treatment effect, we find robust evidence of a negative coresidence effect. We also find heterogeneity in the coresidence effect. Socially active elderly parents are less likely to be in coresidence, and when they do live with a child they experience a better coresidence effect. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

TOWARD A REGIONAL EXCHANGE RATE REGIME IN EAST ASIA

Abstract.  Deepening market-driven economic integration in East Asia makes intraregional exchange rate across the region increasingly desirable and necessary. The paper suggests that East Asia's emerging economies begin to choose a currency basket as a monetary policy anchor to enable all East Asian currencies to collectively appreciate vis-à-vis the US dollar, while maintaining intraregional rate stability, in the event of surges of capital inflows or a rapid unwinding of global payments imbalances. Following this initial step, East Asia may agree on more rigid intraregional exchange rate stabilization schemes through, for example, an Asian Snake or an Asian Exchange Rate Mechanism.     

China–Japan–United States integration amid global rebalancing: A computable general equilibrium analysis

Using a global general equilibrium trade model, this paper assesses the long-term implications of global rebalancing for Asian economies and explores the benefits of China–Japan–United States (US) integration. The analysis suggests that consumption evaporation, a growth slowdown in the US, and the consequent current account correction would force China, Japan, and other East Asian economies to undergo substantial structural adjustments. A combination of domestic reform aimed at boosting service sector productivity and external liberalization aimed at fostering broader economic integration will be critical for East Asian economies to facilitate their economic rebalancing and sustained growth. Our global computable general equilibrium (CGE) analysis suggests that China and Japan need to strengthen their economic ties with the US while at the same time bringing other East Asian economies into this integration process.